


A Get-Together and Getting Together

by orphan_account



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Fake/Pretend Relationship, M/M, My First Work in This Fandom, Prinxiety - Freeform, but like, fake dating au, god help me i need a beta reader, i hesitate to say slow burn, i needed love and acceptance so i wrote it, i wanted this fluff so i wrote it, it got out of control, kinda I guess?, light cursing, literally just some prinxiety fluff, no beta we die like men, now in Present Tense instead of Past Tense because I'm an idiot, some background scheming logicality, this was supposed to be short
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-13
Updated: 2019-12-24
Packaged: 2020-08-20 20:33:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 16,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20233942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: It starts, as most things to do, with a voicemail from Roman’s mother.“Hey sweetie, I know you’re probably in class, but I’m just calling to remind you about the family reunion next week! Your cousins are so excited to see you! I mean, of course, your father and I are too, but we see you more often and- well, never mind. See you soon honey, love you!”Roman feels like he’s been doused in cold water.*****In which Roman needs a boyfriend, Virgil is constantly in a (gay) panic, and everything works out fine, because that's what the writer needs right now.





	1. Amazon Doesn't Overnight Ship Boyfriends (But I Do)

It starts, as most things to do, with a voicemail from Roman’s mother.

“Hey sweetie, I know you’re probably in class, but I’m just calling to remind you about the family reunion next week! Your cousins are so excited to see you! I mean, of course, your father and I are too, but we see you more often and- well, never mind. See you soon honey, love you!”

Roman feels like he’s been doused in cold water. 

It’s not that he doesn't love his family, he does, a lot. They had always been supportive of his passion for theater, and when he came out the most any of his cousins did was give him a high five. His parents had expressed worries about his sexuality, but only because they were afraid he would be discriminated against for it in his life, and no parent wants that for their children. He took their concerns in stride, and when he brought his first boyfriend home, they were nothing less than kind and caring and perfect. 

But scrolling through his teasing texts from his cousins hurt more than he cares to admit. Roman is the youngest of the group, and as the others have already finished college and all have long term partners, there is quite a bit of teasing - even when Roman had had a significant other at the time of the annual family reunion, he never brought them. There's something so final about it, he thinks, and none of his past boyfriends had ever felt enough like “the one” to warrant a week-long stay in a cabin in the mountains at Christmas with his entire extended family.

Several texts in the group chat later, Roman is feeling a little sour about his current state, and hastily types a response.

Roman (12:15): well jokes on you guys, im bringing my boyfriend this time so yall can suck it

Val (12:15): !!!!!

Dee (12:15): WHAT

Remus (12:16): awwww our wittle baby cousin has a boyfwend!!!!

Val (12:16): Roman r u fr???? thats so exciting!!!!!

It only takes Roman a few minutes to remember what is wrong with what he had just texted his cousins.

He is seriously, terribly, horribly single, and has been for the past year, ever since he and Ryker had broken up. 

Shit.

*****

After realizing his mistake, Roman calls an emergency meeting in his other group chat, the one which holds his best friends.

Logan sits across from him at the cafe table, tie impeccable straight and glasses set precisely on his face. His button-down is black (when is it not) and his expression is unamused (again, not out of place). His brown hair is styled neatly, and he is sitting straight-backed in the booth, no doubt holding his boyfriend’s hand underneath the table. Sipping his coffee quietly, he raises an eyebrow at Roman when they make eye contact. Having known Logan since high school, Roman is well aware of what this look means when directed at him. 

Roman pointedly does not acknowledge the unasked question as his gaze slides to Patton (Logan's boyfriend, and Roman's best friend since freshman year), who is sipping his drink and glancing around the cafe with a grin. His patented (Roman’s lips quirk at the pun he’s just used, knowing the man himself would appreciate it) cardigan is tied around his shoulders, and his glasses are pushed up into his curly hair at the moment, allowing a clear view of the freckles dotting his face. 

“Princey, I swear to god if you got me out of bed on the one day I don’t have classes or work for anything less than a six on the scale, they will find your body in the river,” comes a low voice, and Roman forces back a grin as the final member of their group slides into his side of the booth, forcing Roman to squish closer to the wall. 

Virgil had joined their little squad during the first year of college, when he and Patton had been randomly selected roommates, before the boys had even realized they could ask to be roomed together. He was the perfect compliment, and Roman was glad to have him once Patton and Logan finally got together, and so their trio became a quartet. 

“Worry not, Peter Pan-ic, my colossal fuck up easily reaches a seven and a half on the scale.” The scale of anxiety, as they called it, was something they had created for when they needed help. They could type a number in the group chat and the others would know whether it could wait, if they needed a phone call, or if it was all hands on deck.

“A seven and a half, kiddo? Is everything alright? Are you hurt?” Patton immediately pushes his round glasses off his head and onto his face so he could look worriedly at Roman. 

“Not physically no, but I might have made a dumb mistake and-”

“Statistically speaking, not unlikely and highly unsurprising,” Logan interrupts, causing Virgil to snort under his breath, “this has happened before, why does this rank so highly?” Roman glares slightly as his friend, running a hand through his hair. 

“Because this is the kind of dumb mistake we’re talking about,” Roman sighs as he shows the screenshots to Virgil, and then Logan and Patton. 

“But Roman, kiddo, you don’t have a boyfriend,” says his curly-headed friend, causing the Dramatic Friend™ to lay his head on the table. 

“I know,” he groans loudly.

“You really backed yourself into a corner here Princey. Even if you lie and say said boyfriend canceled, your family is gonna ask for pictures and info and why you haven’t mentioned him before. If you lie and say you broke up, they’re gonna wanna know all that plus why you broke up, and then they’ll treat you like glass the whole time,” Virgil hums in his low baritone, and Roman probably would have shivered if it wasn’t for the fact that everything Virgil was saying was making his shoulders slump more and more.

“And if you tell them that you lied about the boyfriend, they’ll wanna know why, and you’ll have to explain why you felt like you had to bring a boyfriend,” Virgil adds, because he thinks of every possible outcome. 

“I know,” he says again, but this time it comes out at a normal volume.

“Therefore, the best solution to this problem is to acquire a boyfriend quickly,” Logan states matter-of-factly, receiving an elbow to his stomach from his significant other. 

“I know,” Roman sighs sadly, his voice a whisper this time.

“Kiddo, why did you feel the need to lie to your family about your relationship status?” Patton asks, and Roman doesn't lift his head as he explains. 

“Because they- my cousins always have their boyfriends or girlfriends or fiances or husbands or wives and I’m just- I’m always the odd one out. I’m always the lonely one, and everyone wants to set me up with this gay friend or this gay co-worker and I- I was tired of their teasing,” he says mournfully to the table, “I’m tired of being the only single and everyone feeling like they can’t be all couple-y around me or giving me sad looks when they realize I don’t have anyone to kiss under the mistletoe or for New Years.” Unknown to him, his three best friends exchange several looks over his head, and Patton pipes up first.

“You could take one of us, Roman,” he offers, and after exchanging a look with Logan, the other glasses-wearer of their crew seems to catch on.

“The problem with that is that we have met Roman’s parents as a couple, Patton,” he hums, and could tell Patton was pushing back a grin. Virgil was glaring at them across the table, hands shoved in his hoodie pockets. His entire demeanor was reading “don’t you fucking dare”.

“That’s true, Logan,” Patton pretends to think to himself. “You know, Virgil doesn’t have that problem,” he says, shooting a wink at the darkly dressed boy across the table, who’s glare schools into a neutral expression as Roman’s head shoots up from the table. 

“Padre you’re a genius!” He exclaims, before latching on to Virgil’s fabric-covered arm. “Please please PLEASE Virge, you’re my only hope!” He cries dramatically. 

Virgil lifts his eyes skyward, cursing the fact that he's such a sucker for Roman’s deep brown eyes. He turns his head down to look at the other boy, completely sure he is going to say no. 

And the light from the campus cafe window turns Roman’s puppy dog eyes amber, and-

“Fine Princey, but you owe me.” 

“Yes!! Thank you Virgil, I’ll make it up to you I swear!” 

And though Virgil’s anxiety is off the charts at what he has just agreed to, the relief and happiness in Roman’s eyes when he lets go of Virgil’s arm (after squeezing it in a hug-like gesture) almost makes it worth it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what? me?? projecting my need to be shown constant love and affection but also my need to show no weakness onto Roman??? whatever could you mean????


	2. Twin Expenditures

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roman’s family is so loud. 
> 
> It's not like Virgil is surprised, and he's sure they are all super nice, of course, but the first thing Virgil (or, more accurately, Virgil’s anxiety) notices is the sheer volume coming from the house in front of him.
> 
> It's more than a little daunting. 
> 
> *****
> 
> In which Roman's family loves Virgil, and the large number of family members creates an ... interesting problem.

Roman’s family is so loud. 

It's not like Virgil is surprised, and he's sure they are all super nice, of course, but the first thing Virgil (or, more accurately, Virgil’s anxiety) notices is the sheer volume coming from the house in front of him.

It's more than a little daunting. 

Roman seems to notice his hesitation and stops his pilgrimage up the driveway to stand in front of him.

“Virgil? Listen if you don’t wanna do this, it’s fine, I really promise. I’ll tell them my boyfriend got sick or something, okay?” Roman says, tilting his head back to meet the gaze of his significantly taller friend.

Ah, yes, the other problem with this scenario: Virgil is pretending to be the boyfriend to his best friend, whom he has been in love with and subsequently gay panicking around since a couple of weeks after they had become friends. 

Three. Years. Ago.

“Princey, it’s fine,” he says, attempting a reassuring smile. Roman doesn't look convinced. 

“Promise?” Virgil’s corresponding chuckle comes from deep in his chest.

“Promise. I’m just a little nervous around large groups, you know that,” he replies in a gentle tone, and Roman’s face finally brightens into a small smile.

“Well, I’ll be right beside you the whole time. If it gets to be too much, just squeeze my hand and I’ll excuse us. I told my cousins you were kinda shy,” he admits, biting his bottom lip.

“Works for me,” the other boy respondes, running his free hand through his hair. “Let’s get this luggage inside, I’m freezing my ass off.” Roman throws his head back with a laugh and forges the way to the front door. The doorbell has just barely stopped ringing when the door is thrown open. 

“Roman!” The woman cries, and Virgil doesn't even have time to decide if it's Roman’s mother before the question is answered: 

“Mama!” His friend exclaims back, embracing the woman, and Virgil has to bite his lip to hold back a grin. Roman is too cute for his own good, and Virgil has only ever heard about his family, has never seen how Roman behaves around them or what they're like. If Roman and his mother are anything to go off of, they're probably all just as extroverted and outgoing. 

The woman glances at him after releasing Roman from the hug, and though it seemed impossible, her grin grows even wider. 

“And you must be Roman’s boyfriend,” she says, before leaning towards her son and speaking in a stage whisper, “You picked a good one, he’s so handsome. And tall!”

Virgil blushes bright red as Roman groans at his mother. 

“Mama, this is Virgil Knight,” his friend - no, boyfriend (for the next week at least) - introduces him. Virgil shifts the luggage to his left hand so he can shake with his right. 

“Please, call me Virgil. It’s wonderful to meet you, Mrs. Prince,” he says, praying his voice is less shaky than it sounds to his ears. The woman pushes his hand away and dives under his free arm.

“None of that around here, Virgil, we’re a hugging family, you just call me Marie, none of this Mrs. or ma’am stuff, young man,” she reprimands kindly, and Virgil awkwardly pats her back as he nods in agreement, not wanting to upset her or say the wrong thing.

“Mama,” Roman interrupts, “Please stop pestering my boyfriend before you scare him away.” Virgil’s heart jumps at Roman’s easy use of the B-Word, and Virgil wishes it would stop its damn workout in his chest before Roman catches wind of how badly it affects him to be called his boyfriend. Mrs. Prince - Marie, Virgil mentally corrects himself - merely laughs at her son and drops her arms from around Virgil’s waist, allowing him to breathe a quiet sigh of relief before she's tugging both of the boys inside and instructing Virgil to “just set that bag down over there by the stairs, you can take it up later, Virgil dear” before they're ushered into the very large, very full-of-people living room. 

There are bodies everywhere. Multiple pieces of furniture have people stuffed onto them, dining room chairs have been pulled into the room, and several people are sitting on the floor as if it's the most normal thing in the world. Out of instinct, he grabs Roman’s hand, and his smaller friend gives him a gentle smile, easing the tightness in Virgil’s chest just a little.

Most of the talking seems to die off as members of Roman’s family notice him. He sticks out like a sore thumb - pale, quiet, and dressed like an emo nightmare, as Roman would say. 

“Ro-Ro!” A woman barrels towards Roman and leaps into his arms, almost causing them both to tumble to the floor. Virgil's hands instinctively brace against Roman's shoulders, barely keeping the pair standing. The woman shares Roman's dark eyes and deep brown locks, and though hers have the familiar waves Virgil knows from his friend's hair, it is styled much longer, tumbling down the middle of her back. 

“Val! I've missed you so much!” And if Virgil’s heart sinks a little in his chest when Roman lets go of his hand to hug the girl, well, he can ignore it by seeing the absolute unbridled happiness in his boyfriend’s eyes. 

Friend, not boyfriend, Virgil reminds himself. Roman’s - sister? cousin? Virgil is pretty sure Roman's an only child, he can't remember him mentioning any siblings - releases him from the hug and turns her attention to Virgil, making his nerves grow. 

“Aren’t you going to introduce your handsome beau to the room?” She teases, and Virgil can see the blush rising in Roman’s cheeks, likely matching his own. 

“Everyone, this is my boyfriend, Virgil Knight, please take a number for a conversation,” Roman laughs, but Virgil has an inkling that he's not kidding as the others start to ask question after question. Roman takes his hand and leans up against his side, knowing the contact will calm Virgil’s anxiety (if only a little). Roman fields most of the questions as his mother shoos some of the cousins off the couch to make room for “the lovely couple”. 

Virgil is glad he's wearing concealer, because the heat in his cheeks lets him know that his blush would be hellishly obvious if he had decided to forgo it. 

Roman immediately cuddles up to Virgil’s side, and Virgil lifts his arm to go around his “boyfriend’s” shoulders, causing the family to make cooing sounds. This type of thing is fairly normal for the duo, as their friend group is usually pretty physically demanding, particularly Roman and Patton. It had taken Virgil awhile, but once he warmed up to the others (and after several late nights where many secrets were revealed) it had become commonplace to cuddle one another.

That didn't mean Virgil’s heart didn’t skip several beats when Roman laid his head against Virgil’s chest as they leaned back, his hands resting on the slender boy’s leg. 

No, Virgil’s heart decides it's time to run a marathon inside his chest cavity, and Virgil prays to any god that will listen, begging for Roman to not be made aware of how badly whipped Virgil is. 

He’s not sure they hear him, but he tries anyway. 

*****

Virgil doesn't mind Roman’s family. He might even dare to say that he liked them, just a little bit. They had their questions, but the duo handles them easily. Yes, they had met at school, because Virgil was Roman's friend Patton’s first roommate (this spun a tangent line of questioning about how Patton and Logan are doing, and then cooing over the two boys and how cute they are). No, it wasn’t love at first sight. Yes, Roman had been the one to ask out Virgil. They didn’t have to tell many lies, though they are pretty vague about how their "relationship" had started. Honestly, it had taken the boys a while to become friends. Roman had been the one Virgil had felt the least accepted by, which had caused a pretty big fight when Roman had gone overboard with the nicknames. 

These days the names and insults they tossed at each other were affectionate, but back then they had been laced with cruelty. Their fight had been a reckoning, and it all came out. Roman felt like Virgil was no fun, and that Virgil had been trying to steal his friends away from him because Virgil only wanted to hang out with Patton and Logan when Roman wasn’t around. Virgil had hated that Roman was always so loud and attracted a lot of attention, and that he was always putting Virgil down about everything - his style, his personality, etc.

So when Virgil explained that he had social anxiety, and he avoided hanging with Roman because the judgment about his person reminded him of his not-so-great family, and Roman explained that he was used to having to be loud to get attention because his family was so big, and he was putting Virgil down because he was feeling defensive, well.

It was easy to understand where each boy had been coming from. They hugged it out, as Patton requested, and their friendship had been solid ever since. 

So no, Virgil doesn't mind Roman’s family. He understands more than ever the smaller boy’s need to be loud and attention-grabbing, especially when it seemed his family is much the same. Val was a singer, apparently, and after an easy dinner (still in the living room; the dining room would be saved for Christmas itself, apparently) she is asked to perform. 

And Virgil watches a little bit of light die from Roman’s eyes, so he squeezes his hand, and Roman makes an excuse about needing to get ready for bed as soon as Val is done. 

“You okay?” Virgil asks quietly as they start up the stairs. Roman had insisted on carrying the suitcase (they had just packed one big one, instead of two little ones).

“I just-” the smaller boy huffs and shakes his head as they reach the top of the stairs and start down a long hallway. “They always ask Val to sing, and she has a gorgeous voice and everything, it’s not like I don’t love her or care for her and I know my family supports my career choices but-”

“But you feel like they don’t care about your craft as much because it’s not really something you can whip out and impress people with as easily as singing,” Virgil offers, stopping them from walking with a gentle hand on Roman’s wrist. 

“Yeah, I guess,” Roman mumbles, not looking up. Virgil sighs gently, squeezing the other boy’s wrist. 

“Ro, you’re an incredible actor. You literally captivated Patton, who has a very short attention span, and Logan, who doesn’t typically care for that sort of thing, and me, who-”

“Yeah okay but like you guys are my friends,” Roman interrupts him, shaking his head, “you guys are required to like my stuff,” he mutters. Virgil looks towards the ceiling.

He takes a deep breath.

And tells Roman the truth.

“Remember those couple of months where I was friends with Patton and Logan and not you?” Roman’s facial expression goes from mournful to sour. 

“Hey, we’re better-”

“Ro, shut up, that’s not my point,” Virgil huffs with a smile, shaking his head. Roman’s expression morphs into confusion, but he nods and doesn’t interrupt again. 

“You were doing Shakespeare in the park. I thought it was really dorky, and Pat and Lo begged me to come. I refused. But they had talked you up, and it piqued my interest because I like Shakespeare, and I justified my interest by thinking that if you were awful, then I could use it as ammo.” Roman rolls his eyes playfully, and Virgil grins.

“And you know what happened, Ro?” Roman shakes his head.

“I watched you recite a monologue from Much Ado, Benedict’s speech. And I was lost. God, Ro, it was like I was in a different place. You weren’t you, and I wasn’t me, and I was watching a man who was realizing someone was in love with him. It was beautiful. Captivating,” Virgil breathes, his grin softening to a gentle smile. 

Roman is silent for a minute, before he glances up, meeting Virgil’s eyes. 

“You mean that?” He asks in a hushed tone, watching as Virgil nods. 

“I couldn’t stand to be in the same room with you back then, Ro. And after you finished I snuck away before Logan and Patton found out and- and I kept the little print out your helpers handed out.” At this Virgil blushes, casting his eyes away. He waits for Roman to say something, anything-

And then Roman has dropped his suitcase and is enveloping Virgil in a hug, pressing his head into the taller boy’s chest. Virgil lifts his arms and wraps them around his friend, resting his chin on Roman's head. 

“Thank V,” Roman huffs out, discreetly wiping his eyes when he drops his arms, turning to pick their bag up again, “I needed to hear that.”

“Anytime, Princey. Now c’mon, I wanna pass out for the next twelve hours.”

“Relax, All Time Woe-”

“That was weak, even for you,” Virgil scoffs, and the boys both laugh.

Until Roman opens the door to their room, and reveals a single bed. 

A single, twin bed. 

Virgil commends himself for not cursing out loud.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO apparently I'm gonna go through every single overused trope because that's who I am as a person tbh ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ hope you're here for fluff and mutual pining because that's all I've got for you. Please point out any mistakes, I edited this while binge listening to Hadestown so any help is much appreciated, thanks!! Also suggestions for tropes to use are totally welcome because I'm garbage, thanks!


	3. A Study In Blushing Pink

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What if Roman’s family figures them out? What if Virgil messes up everything and Roman never talks to him again? Worse, what if Virgil messes up but Roman feels like he has to stay friends with him because of Patton and Logan? Or what if Virgil messes up so badly that Patton and Logan don't want to be his friends anymore, and then he’d be alone again just like before and-
> 
> Breathe, Virgil instructs himself. Breathe. He counts his inhales and exhales to help relax himself, and starts thinking of a distraction, when one presents itself by bursting through the bedroom door.
> 
> And Virgil forgets how to breathe for an entirely different reason.
> 
> Because there, closing the door behind him, still dripping from the shower, face red and only a towel around his waist, is Roman Prince.
> 
> Virgil is so gay.
> 
> *****
> 
> Items are forgotten and the author continues to explore as many over-used tropes as humanly possible. 
> 
> Oh, and lots of blushing.

Roman was the first to start talking, and once he opened his mouth it was like he couldn’t stop.

“Shit, Virge, I’m super sorry- I didn’t realize my mom wouldn’t put the air mattress out, I’ll just sleep on the couch-”

“Roman-” Virgil attempts in vain to stop the rambling. 

“-wait I can’t sleep on the couch because then they’ll ask why we didn’t want to sleep in the same area-”

“Ro, seriousl-”

“-okay so I’ll sneak some extra blankets in here and say that you get really cold at night and then I can sleep on the floor and-”

“Princey!” Virgil exclaims, bursting into laughter as Roman closes his mouth with a snap and turns to him. It's only when he glances at the other boy’s face and sees real distress there that he relents.

“Princey, relax. This is so seriously not a big deal. I’m pretty sure we’ve shared a bed and/or couch on other occasions thanks to movie nights, and you, me, Patton, and Logan have fallen asleep in various combinations. It might be a little bit of a tight fit-” Virgil blushes at his own wording, “-but seriously, it’s fine. Take a deep breath and chill out.” He watches Roman’s chest puff as the boy listens to Virgil's instructions.

“Alright. Fine, this is fine,” Roman states, mostly to himself, and Virgil is struck by a realization: what if Roman doesn't want to share the bed with him? True, they had shared couches before, and beds too, when they were drunk and passed out, but those weren’t exactly stellar examples of consenting to share a sleeping space. Virgil’s heart starts building a grave somewhere in the basement of Ro’s house as he says his next words.

“I mean, if you don’t wanna share a bed, I totally get it and I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, I’ll totally take the floor if that’s-” This time it's Roman who interrupts his taller friend.

“No!” Both boys blush red at the immediate denial, though for different reasons. “I mean, ah,” Roman clears his throat, “no, no, I’m absolutely okay with sharing a bed.” There is silence for a few minutes as Virgil fights back a shy smile, while Roman feels not unlike a plane as it drops from the sky due to engine failure. 

“As long as you don’t hog all the covers, Parks and Devastation.” When in doubt, Roman always brought out the nicknames. It was a surefire way to distract from any awkwardness, particularly when it involved Virgil. The boy in question snorts.

“Yeah, whatever Princey. Those extra covers might not be a bad idea,” Virgil replies, grinning as he lifts the suitcase from where Roman had dropped it, placing it on the bed. “You got any drawers where we can put clothes or do we have to live out of the suitcase, Baron Von Yap?” Roman gasps theatrically.

“A Sound of Music reference? Virgil, I am shocked!” Virgil rolls his eyes playfull in response, shaking his head fondly.

“Believe it or not, Princey, you’re not the only one who’s cultured. Besides, everyone and their mothers have seen The Sound of Music, Julie Andrews is a queen.”

“Can’t argue with that,” Roman admits with a shrug, pulling open the top couple of drawers to his dresser that had been empty since he left for college freshman year. Though neither boy says anything, something about putting their clothes in the same space, next to each other, feels oddly domestic and perfectly ... normal. It feels ... right, in a way.

Again, neither brought this up, both merely stealing glances at each other the whole process and blushing when they got caught. 

“I’mgonnagotakeashowerbye!” Roman blurts out when he and Virgil make accidental eye contact for the third time. He rushes from the room, leaving Virgil to flop onto the bed with a groan as soon as the door swings shut. 

He was gonna ruin this friendship before this week was over, he knows it. He is going to say the wrong thing, or get too close, or make Roman uncomfortable by forgetting this is just a charade and stepping over the lines that are drawn in the sand. 

It's just nice to finally be spending Christmas in such a happy household. The others know he doesn't go home for Christmas, know the general reasons why, even if he had tried to hide the facts as long as he possibly could (well, from Logan and Roman, at least. Kinda hard to hide things from your roommate when your roommate is Patton and you wake up screaming in the middle of the night all of first semester until your brain finally adjusts). All three boys had tried to get him to come home to one of their places for all breaks and holidays, but Virgil always refused. He didn’t want to be a burden to his friends or their families, no matter how much they insisted he wasn’t. And while his anxiety was still telling him he was taking up too much space here, that he didn’t belong, his logical side (which sounds strangely similar to Logan's even tone) insists that he is doing Roman a favor, pretending for his friend, providing a service, so it canceled out. 

Still, Virgil couldn’t help but feel nervous. As he starts to change into his sleeping clothes (an old Panic! shirt and some flannel pants), his thoughts begin to spiral. What if Roman’s family figured them out? What if Virgil messes up everything and Roman never talks to him again? Worse, what if Virgil messes up but Roman feels like he has to stay friends with him because of Patton and Logan? Or what if Virgil messes up so badly that Patton and Logan don't want to be his friends anymore, and then he’d be alone again just like before and-

Breathe, Virgil instructs himself. Breathe. He counts his inhales and exhales to help relax himself, and starts thinking of a distraction, when one presents itself by bursting through the bedroom door.

And Virgil forgets how to breathe for an entirely different reason.

Because there, closing the door behind him, still dripping from the shower, face red and only a towel around his waist, is Roman Prince.

Fuck, Virgil is so gay.

“I, uh, forgot to grab pajamas,” Roman stammers out in a hoarse tone after a few seconds, and Virgil snaps his head away, his own blush running from the tips of his ears all the way down his neck.

“Yeah-” Virgil’s voice cracks, and he clears it awkwardly as he listens to Roman opening the dresser drawers once more, and the sound of rustling clothing. “No worries, totally fine.”

“You’re good now,” Roman says softly, and Virgil takes a few more deep breaths before he turns around, leaning against the wall that the bed is pushed up against. It’s silent for a few moments, and the more dramatic boy breaks the quiet first, per the norm.

“I know you’re a morning shower person, and no one else really is, so you shouldn’t have to fight anybody for the bathroom tomorrow as long as you don’t sleep till noon,” Roman says, a yawn breaking free from his mouth as he stretches his arms over his head. Virgil nods, scooting back on the bed to claim the side against the wall, not wanting to worry about rolling off in the middle of the night thanks to his long limbs. 

Roman flicks off the lights (and it’s then that Virgil notices the glow stars on the ceiling, and his face grows a tiny smile at the sight) and joins him in the bed, crawling under the covers. The performer (whom Virgil knows has no personal boundaries and typically has no problem getting close to people) leaves a respectful distance between them, facing away from Virgil. The taller boy sighs.

“Roman.”

“Yes?” His voice is quieter than normal, though Virgil forces himself to write it off as sleepiness.

“Get over here you dork. If you sleep that close to the edge of the bed you’re gonna roll off,” Virgil huffs, wrapping his arms around Roman’s waist and tugging the other boy closer to him. Roman retaliates by turning around and pressing his face to Virgil’s chest, and Virgil has to take deep breaths to assure Roman won’t feel his heartbeat. 

“Didn’t want to make you uncomfortable,” Roman mutters into the fabric of Virgil’s shirt, and Virgil allows one of his hands to rub slow circles on the boy’s lower back.

“Never, Ro. Go to sleep.”

“M’kay. Night.”

“Night, Princey.”

Virgil may or may not stay awake a little longer, just to look at Roman’s relaxed face, and bask in the feeling of being this close to the person he loves. 

He would deny it, though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> once again please point out any mistakes you see because I am my own editor and that means I miss a lot of stuff! thank you!! also your comments give me life bless all you beautiful, beautiful souls!!! if u wanna hit me up on tumblr (because the interaction will make me feel human) my username is hickory-dickory-doc-k ! also I change what the name at the top says like every day because I like using different names and seeing how they sound so, to answer your question, no, that is not my real name lol XD thank thank thank you!!!! 
> 
> (sidenote, I am proud of all my nicknames that Roman and Virgil say!!!! they take a long time to come up with but i like them!!!)
> 
> (SECOND SIDENOTE: WHY DIDNT ANY OF YOU TELL ME I WAS WRITING IN PAST TENSE?? I DIDNT REALIZE UNTIL I FINISHED THIS CHAPTER AND NOW I GOTTA GO FIX THE OTHER TWO i mean ya'll really let me play myself like that)


	4. Panic! At the Ice Rink

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hours later, after they head back to his family, and go home early in an Uber, after he explains the whole story to Virgil, Roman realizes something:
> 
> He thought of Virgil as his boyfriend in his head.
> 
> This game was getting dangerous. 
> 
> *****
> 
> Virgil and Roman find comfort in each other (aka. both boys are anxious messes because the author is kinda projecting).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So a little bit of a warning? Panic attacks and comfort from them (using grounding techniques that involve physical touch, which is something that calms me down but I recognize it's not for everyone), nightmares, abusive ex (only slightly hinted at? like it's clear he is and he acts like he's going to do something bad, but someone catches him before he does so nothing explicitly bad but I don't want to trigger anybody), and also a really aggressive threat from everyone's favorite snake, so do whatever you need to be safe if any of this stuff might be something bad for your mental health <3

Roman wakes alone in his childhood bed, and his first thoughts are of Virgil.

He definitely does not blush at this fact as soon as he is alert enough to realize this. 

Roman can hear the shower running down the hall, and assumes his resident emo is getting ready for the day. He had explained in the car ride yesterday that his family liked to spend a lot of the Christmas reunion together, watching movies or doing wintery things like ice skating or playing in the snow. He isn't sure what they would be doing today, though he's sure everyone would decide at breakfast. 

Speaking of, Roman rolls over to the side of his bed, checking the clock and groaning at the time on the face. 

It’s 6:30, why the hell is Virgil awake this early?

Roman sits straight up, his next thought answering his own question: Nightmares.

Patton, Logan and Roman all knew about the nightmares Virgil experienced, thanks to him sharing a room with Patton. They had all learned different ways to help him after one, and Roman couldn’t believe he didn’t wake up when Virgil was in distress. 

Roman is sliding out of bed before he can even contemplate it, heading to the bathroom and barely knocking. 

“Uh … occupied?” Comes Virgil’s hesitant response, and Roman doesn’t even state his name or business before he’s barging in, shushing Virgil’s shriek after he realizes his mistake. 

“V, relax, it’s just me,” he huffs, and Virgil’s shadow behind the shower curtain stills.

“Uhm, hi?” The other boy’s voice is still rough with sleep, and Roman sinks down to sit on the floor, his back leaned against the wall.

“Nightmare?” He asks gently, leaning his chin on his knees. There’s silence for a few moments, filled with only their gentle breathing before Virgil’s voice reappears.

“Yeah,” he says, and his voice cracks, and Roman’s heart breaks.

“Wanna finish up in that shower and come join me in bed again?” Roman knows it sounds sexual. He knows Virgil won’t take it that way, and yet his heart speeds up at the idea that Virgil might take it the way he actually means it. 

Virgil’s voice gives nothing away as he replies, “yeah.”

Roman takes a deep breath before removing himself from the bathroom, closing the door quietly behind him. Virgil joins him in the bed three impossibly long minutes later, and much like Roman the night before, leaves a comfortable distance between them. Thanks to his wet hair being pushed back from his face, Roman can see the way Virgil’s eyes look anywhere but at him, and Roman resists the urge to fondly roll his eyes. Instead, he pulls the taller boy closer, allowing Virgil to hide his face in his neck. It’s harder to cuddle this way, since V is so much taller than him, but he’s found it’s the best way to get the boy to actually let his feelings out for once.

“Hey,” he says softly, patting Virgil’s back. “It’s okay. Whatever happened isn’t real, and I’m here, and everything is okay.” Roman feels more than sees the deep, rocky breath Virgil takes. 

And then Virgil is crying in the freaky, almost silent way he does. His body shakes like a leaf and Roman continues to quietly speak reassuring phrases, feeling Virgil begin to calm down. 

He wants to kiss him. Roman wants to kiss his mouth, or his cheeks or his nose or his forehead or- or anything, anything Virgil would let him. Roman wants to cross that line, find new ways to make Virgil feel better. 

He knows it would only end in disaster. So he cracks jokes instead, and some of them are even Patton levels of bad.

“Hey, how much money does a pirate spend on corn? A buccaneer!” 

“Which country’s capital has the fastest growing population? Ireland, obviously, every day it’s Dublin.”

“What’s the difference between a hippo and a zippo? A hippo is really heavy, and a Zippo is a little lighter!” 

Roman’s last joke finally brokers a snort from Virgil, and he considers that a win. A glance over the other boy’s shoulder tells him that breakfast will be ready soon, and if they’re not down there, no food will be had by either of them.

Roman is totally willing to give up breakfast if it means Virgil feels better, and if it means he gets to stay close to him. Virgil has other plans, which he makes evident by sitting up and running his hands over his face.

“Thanks, Princey. Sorry for the-” Roman shoots him a gentle glare, a reminder that he’s not allowed to apologize for anything of this nature, “-right, not sorry then, loser.” Roman huffs and rolls his eyes, but there’s a smile on his face as he stands. 

“C’mon then, it’s pancakes today for sure!” He exclaims, grabbing Virgil’s hand excitedly and rushing them down the stairs.

*****

Roman’s family had decided to go ice skating this year. They had put it to a vote at breakfast, and it was almost unanimous (Dee didn’t want to go, and Roman didn’t vote for it, but he hadn’t explained to Virgil why). So now they're at the ice rink, and it's fun! Virgil is a better skater than Roman had thought he would be, and they glide around the rink together holding hands, exchanging witty banter, and altogether doing things that make Roman’s stomach fill with butterflies and his heart overflow with sunshine. 

“Roman? Roman can you hear me? What’s wrong?”

Oh, right.

That’s what had been happening ten minutes before now. What Roman wishes were still happening. 

Instead, he had run into his ex-boyfriend when he took off his skates and went to go get hot chocolate for him and Virgil, who was probably currently being interrogated by Val.

Shit.

*****

This was exactly why Roman didn’t want to come. Dee had voted against it too, and had shot him a knowing look when the family made the decision anyway. Roman’s ex was at the front of the cafe, and when he finished his order, Roman did his best to keep his eyes locked on his phone screen, head down.

Fate was not smiling on him today.

“Roman, honey, is that you?” Asked the man who sidled up next to where he was leaning. Roman makes a big show of glancing up from his phone and looking at the light-haired man in confusion before “recognizing” him.

“Tad, hello.”

“Oof, you don’t have to be so cold honey,” is the response Roman receives, and ugh he hates how smooth Tad is, even now. 

“I don’t know what you mean?” He says, feigning ignorance and disinterest. Tad is not going to ruin his day, he is not going to let Tad ruin his-

“Honey, I know I didn’t teach you to be so rough with me,” comes the growled, low tone, and Roman flinches as his wrist is suddenly in a vice-tight grip. “I’ve always told you to play nice.”

“I’m not your item anymore, Tad,” Roman tries to say it in a defiant tone, but it sounds weak and they both know it. 

“Well it’s not like you couldn’t be again,” his ex-boyfriend replies, and Roman’s name is being called by the barista but Tad is tugging him out of the cafe that's inside the ice rink, and god Tad had been bad before but he's trying to kidnap Roman now? This is new and it is bad, new and bad and Roman doesn't know-

“Roman!” Roman doesn't know relief until this moment. 

Dee is rushing at them, smiling at Roman and then glaring intensely at Tad. “I’m sorry, I don’t think my cousin particularly wants to go with you, he needs to be getting back to his-”

“I think Roman does want to go with me. What do you say, honey?” Tad is looking at him, Tad is squeezing his wrist tighter and-

“Alright, listen up jackass,” Dee is quicker than Tad could ever be, stepping forward to be eye-to-eye with the man, “if you don’t let my cousin go right now, I will personally take off these skates and use them to dismember you and throw your body parts in separate snow banks.” Tad’s eyes widen as he releases Roman, who goes stumbling into his cousin’s arms. 

“You’re fucking crazy, all of you!” He shouts, and none of the other patrons bat an eye as he storms out, and now Dee is moving him, and now he's on the floor and Dee is asking him what's wrong and-

*****

“Virgil,” he manages to gasp out to his cousin as he goes from numb to panic attack in moments. “Virgil, I need Virgil,” Dee is shaking his head but Roman shakes his head back and repeats the name over and over until Dee is standing, and his voice sounds a million years away but also right in Roman’s ears, too loud, way too loud and all he wants is-

“Roman?” 

Roman surges upwards at the sound of his name in that deep baritone, and he can’t focus for shit but Virgil is catching him, wrapping his arms around him and Roman presses his face into his boyfriend’s shirt, shaking as the tears start to flow. Virgil tightens his grip, and Roman briefly thinks that this is a role reversal from this morning.

“Hey, Princey, what happened?” Roman shakes his head, his hands moving up to grasp at the fabric of Virgil’s shirt, balling it into his fists. 

“Okay, hey, no need to explain then, I gotcha,” and Virgil says some things over his head, and Roman feels less like he’s surrounded by people as he gets eased to the floor, sitting in his boyfriend’s lap.

“Ro, it’s okay, I gotcha, everything is alright.” He almost wants to laugh at how Virgil is regurgitating the same words he said this morning at him, but it’s too comforting to want to make a joke out of it right now.

“Sing?” Roman whispers quietly. A secret. Virgil tenses, and then forcibly relaxes himself. 

“Sure, Princey. Anything for you,” and then Virgil’s velvet tone is washing over him, singing the song he usually did when Roman asked this of him.

“Fly me to the moon, let me sail among the stars~” 

Virgil had sung to him the first time he caught Roman in a panic attack. Roman had locked himself in the bathroom stall at a party and wouldn’t come out, and Virgil had been quiet for several minutes before the Frank Sinatra song had started playing. Roman had thought Virgil had left, abandoned him for being too much work. 

Virgil only had to sing part of the first verse before Roman had opened the door and attacked him with a hug, and it was now Virgil’s go-to anytime the smaller boy was distressed and there weren’t any people around.

“In other words, please be true, in other words~” 

Roman never let him finish the last bit, never wanted to hear those words that were written to be in love sung by the boy who would never love him, not like that. So he huffs and sits up slightly, causing his favorite emo to close his mouth quickly. 

“Saw my ex-boyfriend. More on that story later,” he says, offering a watery smile. “Sorry for-”

“What did you literally just glare at me for this morning?” Virgil scoffs.

“Apologizing,” Roman mumbles, fighting back a smile.

“Right. So don’t, Ro. It’s okay.” 

Hours later, after they head back to his family, and go home early in an Uber, after he explains the whole story to Virgil, Roman realizes something:

He thought of Virgil as his boyfriend in his head.

This game was getting dangerous.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof this chapter took forever cause classes started for me and i'm getting a lil stressed and busy but worry not! I will always find time to write garbage stuff that has people giving me compliments I don't deserve because I thrive under positive attention! ;) As always, please point out any mistakes!! Find me on tumblr as hickory-dickory-doc-k i love to chat and make new friends!! I'm also like always bored? like i'm busy with classes but I love being asked random questions or given song selections or whatever so like ,,, HIT ME UP FAM 
> 
> so much love to everyone who leaves kudos or nice comments, srsly yall deserve all the love thank you so much!!!!! 
> 
> HUGE shoutout to everyheroneedsavillian for motivating me to write this and for the idea involving Roman angst with an ex and overblown protective family!!! Shes amazing and u should follow her on tumblr or something bc I love her❤️❤️❤️


	5. The One With The Kid (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Whoa there! We need jackets first, Rem, or we’ll freeze to death.”
> 
> “But there’s no snow!” The boy protests weakly, squirming in his older cousin’s arms.
> 
> “Ah, but it might still snow yet, buddy. Besides, it’s freezing. Virgil’s wearing his jacket and he’s not even outside yet,” Roman hears Virgil’s quiet snort, because they both know he wears his jacket 24/7, even if he’s sweating buckets because of it.
> 
> “... can we wear our matching jackets?” He mumbles, and Roman feels his cheeks heat. He was really hoping Remy wouldn’t bring that up.
> 
> “Matching jackets?” Virgil echoes, and Remy turns his attention to the emo boy.
> 
> *****
> 
> Virgil meets the youngest Prince family member - and he's just as adorable as he sounds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the only warning here is that roman does start to think of something mildly inappropriate, I guess? nothing gets explicitly stated because he stops that thought path but, ya know. Just thought I'd say that it's in here.

Roman wakes just in time to hear his door slam open. His instincts kick in, and he sits up, catching his youngest cousin mid-leap as Remy shouts loudly, waking Virgil in the process.

“Ro-Ro! Wake up!! It’s Christmas Eve!” His cousin shouts, and Virgil rolls over, pressing his face into Roman’s thigh and quietly groaning.

“Rem, we’ve talked about this,” Roman says playfully as he glances at the clock. “What are the rules for the holidays?” The six-year-old has the smarts to look bashful, and responds.

“No slamming doors, and don’t wake anyone up before eight o’clock,” he mumbles, and Roman nods.

“That’s right.” He pauses, glancing down at Virgil, who blinks up at him sleepily. Dark eyeliner is still smudged around his eyes. Remy is looking at him, seeming increasingly closer to crying every second Roman holds him up in the air.

“... but it’s Christmas Eve, I guess I can let it slide,” Roman hums the same response he uses every year, and his grin makes itself known as Remy fistbumps one of his hands into the air. The actor nudges Virgil, who finally sits up as Roman places his cousin down on the bed.

“Virgil, this is my cousin Remy. Remy, this is Virgil.”

“Tia said Virgil is your boyfriend!” Remy exclaims, making a grossed-out face. Virgil stiffens slightly, but Roman’s hand finds his under the blankets.

“Rem, having a boyfriend is totally normal, and-”

“No it’s not! It’s gross!” Roman opens his mouth, feeling his nerves grow, when Remy speaks again. “You were the only cousin who didn’t kiss anybody! Now you’re gonna be all gross and make out just like Val and Remus and Dee-Dee! It’s icky! Why do adults have to be so gross all the time?” Remy grumbles, crossing his arms adorably. Roman relaxes, and feels Virgil do the same.

“Oh c’mon Rem, Virgil is great! We promise to keep the making out at a minimum, okay?” Remy looks unconvinced, but he glances at Virgil and seems satisfied.

“Fine! Since you’re awake already can we  _ please  _ go to the park? Mom’s gonna be busy all day with Tia cooking, and she said I have to ‘bug you if I want to go somewhere’,” Remy says, holding up his fingers to make quotation marks. Roman spares a look at Virgil and momentarily wishes they could lay in bed and cuddle for a few more hours. Then Virgil shrugs, and Roman remembers that he’s not his real boyfriend, and Remy is his favorite cousin, honestly. 

“Sure, Rem. Go downstairs, Virgil and I will be down once we finish getting dressed, kiddo.” His baby cousin nods excitedly, and bolts out of the room and down the stairs.

“Sorry about him, he’s really energetic and kinda dramatic,” Roman explains as he stands to stretch. He hears Virgil gasp and turns to shoot him a confused look, which grows when he sees the deadpan stare his friend is leveling at him.

“You mean someone related to you, Roman Prince, is dramatic and energetic? Shocking-” Roman rolls his eyes and shoves Virgil’s shoulder.

“Yeah yeah-”

“Really, astounding, I never would have guessed-”   
  


“Whatever Gretchen  _ Whine _ -rs, you-”

“I mean, crazy how that works out, Princey-”

Virgil and he continue to banter playfully as they get dressed and make their way downstairs, Roman carefully checking for hidden mistletoe. His family would  _ definitely  _ play that trick. Remy tackles him as soon as he’s safely off the last stair, and he catches his cousin once more, throwing him over his shoulder and charging through the house, putting on his ‘prince’ voice.

“Tis I, the brave Prince Roman, coming to save his royal highness from danger!” Remy squeals as Roman plops him down in a seat at the table, grabbing a muffin and placing it in front of him. “Eat up kiddo, Virgil and I are gonna pack some snacks for the park.” The little boy nods and tears into the muffin as Roman pulls his friend into the kitchen, quickly checking cabinets and the pantry for good snack foods. Virgil is oddly silent, so Roman pointedly  _ does not  _ look at him as he says his next words.

“You don’t have to go to the park if you don’t want to. I know little kids are a handful, you can chill in my room for the day if you’d like,” Roman continues rummaging around in the pantry, telling himself he certainly  _ won’t  _ be heartbroken if Virgil chooses not to come. When the emo boy doesn’t respond, he forces himself to turn around and make eye contact. Virgil looks carefully reserved, eyeing Roman cautiously. 

“Do you … not want me to come? Because if you wanna spend time with your cousin one-on-one, I totally get it-”

“Oh my gosh no!” Roman gasps, shaking his head maybe a little  _ too  _ quickly. “Totally not what I meant, I just didn’t want to force you to-”

“Princey, I’d love to hang out with you and your cousin,” Virgil reassures his friend, offering a small smile. Roman relaxes, shoving some goldfish, fruit snacks, and a couple of bananas into a lunch bag that he steals off the shelf. Those would work for lunch, and they could buy something heavier at a restaurant if they wanted to. Roman wasn’t made of money, not as a broke college student, but he always saved up money to buy Christmas presents, and kept some extra to treat Remy when he visited. 

“So where was Remy before?” Virgil asks curiously. He had been wondering why he hadn’t met the youngest (and arguably the cutest) Prince family member before this morning. 

“His mom usually works right up until the day before Christmas Eve, so yesterday was their travel day. They probably got in last night in time to have dinner with the rest of my family, but we were pretty much holed up in my room all night. I’m almost postitive they had to tie Remy to a chair to keep him from running into my room until this morning,” Roman laughs, shaking his head as he zips the lunch bag closed. “He’s always really excited to see me. And he’s my favorite cousin, so it works out.” He leads Virgil back out of the kitchen, seeing Remy practically vibrating in his seat. 

“Alright, c’mon little man, let’s go!” The words are barely out of Roman’s mouth before the six-year-old is jumping from his seat and sprinting towards the door, only to be stopped as Roman snatches him off the ground in the middle of his mad dash.

“Whoa there! We need jackets first, Rem, or we’ll freeze to death.”

“But there’s no snow!” The boy protests weakly, squirming in his older cousin’s arms.

“Ah, but it might still snow yet, buddy. Besides, it’s freezing. Virgil’s wearing his jacket and he’s not even outside yet,” Roman hears Virgil’s quiet snort, because they both know he wears his jacket 24/7, even if he’s sweating buckets because of it.

“... can we wear our matching jackets?” He mumbles, and Roman feels his cheeks heat. He was _really _hoping Remy wouldn’t bring that up.

“Matching jackets?” Virgil echoes, and Remy turns his attention to the emo boy.

“Yeah! Ro-Ro and I have matching jackets! They have crowns on them!”

“Oh my god, Princey you’ve got matching jackets with your cousin?” Roman spares an embarrassed glance at his friend, waiting for the inevitable teasing to come, but Virgil is just grinning brightly. “That’s adorable. I’m offended, why don’t we have matching jackets?” And then Roman is blushing for a whole  _ other  _ reason, which totally has nothing to do with the idea of Virgil wearing clothes that match his own, and getting to pull that clothing off of Virgil to-

“O-kay! Go get your matching jacket kiddo!” Roman exclaims, forcing himself to stop that train of thought in its tracks. He sets his cousin down and Remy charges up the stairs towards one of the guest rooms. There’s a silence that Virgil breaks first.

“Seriously, we have to get matching jackets now. Actually, our whole group needs matching jackets, Patton would love that. I’m saving that as a birthday gift idea for him,” he snorts, pulling out his phone to type up the idea in his notes.

“It was something I told Remy we could do so he would always have a bit of me with him. He was really nervous to start school this year,” Roman admits. Virgil opens his mouth to respond, but the young boy is rushing down the stairs again and leaping onto Roman, who catches him with a groan about how tall he’s getting. The giggling trio pulls on jackets and gloves, and Roman grabs his lunch bag before they’re all out the door, pulling it closed behind them in spite of the heavy winds. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always please let me know of mistakes!! Find me on tumblr! Find me on discord now too because I finally got it!! Tumblr is hickory-dickory-doc-k and discord is deceit-call-me-dee-dee#4855 ! I love to chat!!! 
> 
> I know this chapter is just kinda filler, but the second half of christmas eve will be next chapter :D if you're wondering how many chapters this is going to be, I'll give you my real answer: no clue. like no idea. none at all. sorry not sorry.
> 
> Thank you for your kudos and comments and nice stuff!! It's all really great and it makes me soooo happy and oh my gosh i don't have words to describe how happy it makes me. anyway. should I cross upload this fic on tumblr? I'm thinking about it but I'm not sure yet tbh, I'll listen to ya'll about it.
> 
> and hey!! if you have any ideas you'd like to see written or whatever, even not revolving around this specific au, shoot me a message! I love writing new stuff, and honestly I have to take breaks from this au sometimes but I still want to write so like. hit me up my dudes. 
> 
> love ya'll!!!


	6. The One With The Kid (Part II)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Why do you wear eyeshadow?”
> 
> “Because I like it.”
> 
> “Why do your jeans have holes in them?”
> 
> “Because I like them.”
> 
> “Why are you dating Roman?”
> 
> “Because I like him-” Virgil says before he thinks about the answer. He feels more than sees Roman stiffen at his quick response, and he feels like he’s just ruined everything. But Remy, in ever excited-child fashion, sees the park up ahead and bolts towards the slides. Leaving them alone to finish the short distance to the park.
> 
> There’s dead silence for too long.
> 
> *****
> 
> The boys go to the park.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *rolls in several weeks late with a new chapter in one hand and a starbucks in the other* sup babes

Remy takes a liking to Virgil almost immediately, and starts drowning him in questions. Virgil seems a little confused at the small child’s obsession with him, but rolls with the punches and answers as fast as the questions come.

His favorite color is purple. Yes, he does like black too. His favorite Disney movie is Black Cauldron (Roman groans playfully at that response). He likes winter the most, but Halloween is his favorite holiday. No, he doesn’t have any pets. Yes, he would like one. A spider. Yes, really, a spider. 

And on and on. The questions continue, getting more and more random.

“Have you ever flown in a plane?”

“A couple of times. Have you?”

“No, but I wanna. Do you drink coffee?” Virgil snorts at that one.

“Yeah, but I’m guessing you haven’t.”

“Yeah, nobody will let me.” Virgil can see why. Remy is practically vibrating already.

“Why do you wear eyeshadow?”

“Because I like it.”

“Why do your jeans have holes in them?”

“Because I like them like that.”

“Why are you dating Roman?”

“Because I like him-” Virgil says before he thinks about the answer. He feels more than sees Roman stiffen at his quick response, and he feels like he’s just ruined everything. But Remy, in ever excited-child fashion, sees the park up ahead and bolts towards the slides. Leaving them alone to finish the short distance to the park.

There’s dead silence for too long. Virgil opens his mouth, but Roman beats him.

“Remy seems to really like you.”

“Yeah I-” Wait what? Virgil gives pause as the normal statement, and decides not to look a gift horse in the mouth. “I have no idea why. I don’t have any siblings and I’ve never spent a lot of time around children.”

“Yeah, but you're pretty cool,” Roman says with a small smile, and Virgil takes his window of opportunity to lighten the atmosphere.

“Careful, Princey. People might actually start to think you care about me,” he teases. 

And as they reach Remy, he swears he hears Roman speak again.

“Maybe because I do.”

*****

Roman had a weird, tingling sensation in his chest.

Call it a feeling. 

Perhaps an enlightenment. 

But maybe, just maybe, he had a chance with Virgil.

He had responded so quickly to Remy’s question, saying he liked Roman. Even Roman wasn’t that natural of an actor on a good day, not with improv. And then Virgil had looked so hesitant, looked like …

Like a kid caught with their hand in the cookie jar.

Roman isn’t oblivious.

(Okay, maybe a little.) 

(Or a lot.)

But he isn’t stupid enough to miss the way Virgil had side-eyed him after answering the question on instinct. The way Virgil had taken the chance to make a joke, deflect Roman’s compliment. In fact, the more Roman thought about it, the more he could pick out little things from the past few days. 

Little things that seemed a lot like Big Things.

Big Things that meant that Virgil could like him back. 

Big Things that meant he might have a chance.

Which is impossible!

Right?

… right?

Maybe he should call Patton. 

*****

The park is abandoned when they arrive, and it's just Virgil’s style. It had been overcast since earlier in the morning and the sun still hasn’t made its appearance, so the weather is delightfully dreary (and chilly). Virgil actually zips up his hoodie for once, and allows himself to follow Remy’s lead.

The child is like watching a bullet in motion.

Every second is filled with movement, darting from the slide to the monkey bars to the top of the eagle’s nest and then back to the monkey bars. Virgil gives up chasing him after a bit and claims his spot, resting at the top of the nest as Remy goes up, down, around and under the playground equipment, shrieking and hollering to no one as he runs.

It’s adorable, and Virgil can’t help but think about what having a sibling like Remy would have been like. 

_ Terrible. Bad. One kid in my situation was enough.  _

“I’m predicting he’ll tire himself out in about fifteen minutes, and then we can go for hot chocolate before we head home,” he hears Roman’s voice from the ground and forces himself not to flinch. The other boy had been talking on the phone across the park for a few minutes, and Virgil hadn’t been able to figure out who or what he was talking about or to. 

“I’m good to chill as long as he wants,” Virgil responds, turning his head to see Roman clamoring up the metal bars to sit next to him. They survey the area like it’s their kingdom.

It’s a lovely thought.

“Yeah, but he gets tired easy. And he’s still at the age where naptime is a thing,” Roman chuckles, and the sound makes Virgil smile. “Patton says hello, by the way.” 

Virgil’s smile falters a little.

“Oh, that’s who you were talking to?” Weird. Their group chat had been mostly radio silence since Virgil and Roman had left. And for Patton to call and not talk to both of them? Double weird.

“Yeah, he called me and you were with Remy, so I went ahead and told him we’d call again later, or he could call you to talk tonight,” Virgil’s smile straightens out and he nods.

“Sounds good. I kinda miss Padre if I’m being honest,” the taller boy says quietly, and Roman bobs his head in agreement.

“Yeah, him and the TI-84-”

“Did you literally just call L a specific type of graphing calculator-”

“-are pretty nice. Even if I don’t tell Logan as much all that often.”

They sit in the quiet of their mutual confessions for a minute, before Remy seems like he’s winding down. The boy collapses at the base of the structure they’re seated on, breathing heavily. Roman appears to be listening carefully, sitting up straight and tilting his slightly, before-

“Rem, do you need your inhaler?”

“Don’t have,” Remy gasps, and Virgil feels his anxiety spike. But then Roman climbs down off the eagle’s nest and produces an inhaler from his pocket, helping his cousin sit up and use it.

It takes a few minutes before Remy is back to breathing normally, and Virgil isn’t sure what he should do. Roman stands and dusts off his pants, glancing to him.

“Hot chocolate?” Virgil glances at Remy, but Roman shakes his head minutely and Virgil feels like he knows what that means: act normal.

So Virgil slides off the eagle’s nest and takes Roman’s hand like it’s the most natural thing in the world.

*****

Roman kind of wants to die.

Virgil had held his hand all the way to the coffee shop, and then in line at the coffee shop, while Remy was bouncing around, mostly back to his normal self (though yawning pretty frequently). And they held hands all the way back to the house, though Virgil dropped his hand to open the door for them.

And like a fool, Roman didn’t pay attention as they trailed after Remy into the family room.

His mom was quick to the punch. 

“Roman!” Roman had thrown his gaze to his mom, who had simply pointed up.

Roman hadn’t wanted to look, but he did.

Mistletoe. 

So yeah, Roman wants to die.

And he hurries to speak up, to interrupt his family’s cheeky grins and snickers.

“Virgil actually isn’t very good with public displays-” But to Roman’s complete and utter shock, the boy himself interrupts. 

“Princey, it’s fine. Not a big deal.” And before Roman can react, Virgil is swooping down and pressing a kiss to his cheek. 

Roman freezes.

His family hoots and hollers, and Roman flushes red, and there’s _that_ thought again.

Patton hadn’t been any help on the phone. He had simply talked in  _ that voice  _ that meant he was grinning, and told Roman that he couldn’t tell him for sure or not if Virgil liked him, but that maybe he should just go for it.

And that thought, that little, tiny beam of hope surfaces again.

_ Maybe I have a chance.  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back!! I didn't die, but I got really sick and also school is killing me (both my free time to write and my want to write, because I'm constantly writing papers for class) so I'm sorry for the wait for forever!! There's probably just going to be a longer wait between chapters and that sucks and I'm sorry :( it is what it is and I'll try really hard to be prompt I promise
> 
> anyway your kind words and comments and kudos keep me going!! I love them all and I love you all!! Big shout out to my friend Stan for helping me find the will to write this chapter!! She is amazing!!
> 
> Anyways please find me on tumblr (hickory-dickory-d-ock) or discord (dee-dee#4855) to chat!!!! I love to chat!!! About anything!!! 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed!!!


	7. A Matching Set

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virgil is woken by Roman.
> 
> Loudly.
> 
> “Virgil Virgil Virgil! Wake up wake up it’s CHRISTMAS!” Virgil was awake the second Roman had started poking him, whispering to wake him before proceeding to shaking and shouting. He has decided to pretend to still be sleeping, but it’s hard, mostly because he wants to laugh and smile and open his eyes to Roman’s excited face. They’ve never spent Christmas together.
> 
> “Listen here you dark emo bastard, I know you’re not asleep, you’re the lightest sleeper I’ve ever met so WAKE UP!”
> 
> *****
> 
> In which I explore even MORE overdone fanfic tropes because I want to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi

_ Why do I do that why did I do th _ ** _at why did I do that why DID I-_ **

Virgil lays awake in bed for a long time that night. He can't get past the look on Roman’s face, how even just kissing his cheek had felt right, how-

How he wishes this was real.

And that’s the truth, isn’t it? It’s not that Virgil can’t get over the cheek kiss.

It’s that he can’t get over Roman. 

He turns his head to look at the boy in question, who’s sleeping with his head laid slightly against Virgil’s shoulder, drooling like a dork. 

He’s been lost on Roman for a long time. His friend has so many amazing qualities that Virgil could probably write several Shakespearean sonnets about why he has a crush on him.

Virgil has, actually.

He loves how good Roman is with kids. He’d be the perfect dad. He loves how kind Roman is, even if they didn’t get off on the right foot. He loves how Roman talks too loud sometimes (it used to annoy him, but now it’s endearing). He loves how Roman’s hair looks when he first wakes up, always messy and cowlicked weirdly. He loves how Roman talks with such passion. He loves when Roman asks him to run lines with him, loves seeing the fire in his friend’s eyes. He loves-

He loves Roman.

Not like, friend love. Not like with Logan or Patton. 

He  _ loves  _ Roman. 

It’s a startling sort of realization, even if it shouldn’t be. He knew he had a crush on Roman, a pretty big one.

But romantic love?

Virgil must move or twitch in panic at the thought, because Roman shifts his head to look at him, humming softly. 

“V? Are you okay?” He says in a groggy, gravely voice, and Virgil swallows.

“Yeah, I’m good Princey, go back to sleep,” he says as quietly as he can manage. 

“Are you sure? Did you have a nightmare?” Virgil’s heart warms and skips a beat at the same time at Roman’s concern for him.

“No, I just woke up a little, everything’s fine, I promise.”

“Mmmm, okay.” Virgil assumes that’s the end of it. 

He is wrong.

Roman turns towards him, eyes still closed, and presses his face until Virgil’s neck. One arm comes over Virgil’s body and he snuggles closer, and Virgil’s face is burning but he feels more at peace than he has all night.

“Thanks Roman,” he whispers before he falls asleep. 

*****

Virgil is woken by Roman.

Loudly.

“Virgil Virgil Virgil! Wake up wake up it’s CHRISTMAS!” Virgil was awake the second Roman had started poking him, whispering to wake him before proceeding to shaking and shouting. He has decided to pretend to still be sleeping, but it’s hard, mostly because he wants to laugh and smile and open his eyes to Roman’s excited face. They’ve never spent Christmas together.

“Listen here you dark emo bastard, I know you’re not asleep, you’re the lightest sleeper I’ve ever met so WAKE UP!” Virgil can’t help but burst into loud laughter, his eyes popping open. 

“Okay okay, I’m up Princey,” he says, meeting Roman’s eyes and-

Virgil is a little startled by how fondly Roman is looking at him. Almost like-

_ Almost like nothing, fuck off stupid brain,  _ Virgil thinks to himself.

“So, what does Christmas look like in the Princey household?” He forces himself to speak as both of them climb out of bed.

“Usually we open presents in our pajamas, then we eat breakfast, then we all kinda relax until the big meal, because we dress up all fancy to sit down together that way my mom can have a ton of pictures.”   


“So what I’m hearing is the rest of your family is just as dramatic as you are?” Virgil teases to distract Roman from the fact that he’s slipping his present into his pocket.

“I’m not sorry that we know how to have fun and you don’t, Count Wack-ula,” Roman quips. Virgil is about to respond, but Roman’s mother calls up to them.

“You sleepy-heads finally awake? Get down here and let’s open presents!”

“Coming mama!” Roman shouts back, and the two boys hurry down the stairs to the living room. The whole Prince clan is sitting around the room, and there are stacks of presents under the tree.

Like, literal stacks. 

Virgil doesn’t think he’s seen so many presents in his entire life put together. 

He and Roman take a seat on the floor, and Roman leans into Virgil like it’s instinct. Virgil, to his credit, only pauses slightly before he wraps his arm around Roman’s shoulder, leaning against the wall. 

The family passes out presents by name, getting them all sorted before they decide who opens what and when. Virgil is shocked when he’s handed several expertly-wrapped packages, glancing around at Roman and his family.

“Roman’s mentioned you before, dear. When he said he was bringing his boyfriend home, we thought it might be you. We didn’t have a whole lot to go on, but we tried,” Roman’s mother says, and Virgil doesn’t even think to wonder why Roman had mentioned him so often that his family assumed _ he _ was the boyfriend because he’s tearing up. He’s crying in front of Roman and his family and he probably looks like a huge idiot-

Roman’s family pointedly ignores Virgil’s shaky voice when he blurts out a thank you, and then they start at the far end of the room. One person opens all their presents at once, so when they get around to Roman and Virgil, the latter has had time to calm himself down. 

He chokes up again when he unwraps a pair of headphones and two gift cards for music. He’s thankful the Princes didn’t spend more, but when he turns to Roman to watch him open his gifts, his friend nudges a box into his hands. 

“Roman, c’mon-”

“Virgil don’t even start, you always say we aren’t allowed to buy presents but I wanted to so shut your mouth,” he says, but he’s smiling, and Virgil cannot deny Roman anything, so he slowly unwraps the oddly thin package.

It’s a vinyl record of Fly Me to the Moon. 

“It wasn’t super expensive, I found it at the thrift store and I just thought it would be perfect,” Roman explains, and Virgil can’t find the words so he sets the package aside and tugs Roman into a hug. It’s awkward because they’re on the floor and Roman’s family is watching, but they’re both grinning when they pull away, Virgil subtly wiping his eyes.

“Alright Princey, you’re up.” Roman unwraps more presents than Virgil, and his reactions to each are so overdramatic that the quieter boy doesn’t feel as weird about his own tears to receiving gifts. Roman is about to tell them to move on when Virgil digs his hand into his pajama pants’ pocket.

“You didn’t think I’d let you get away with getting me a present and then not get one for you too?” Virgil smirks, pressing the small, wrapped item into Roman’s right hand despite the shorter boy's protests. 

Roman doesn’t quite understand what it is when he unwraps it, so Virgil reaches out and pops open the lid of the wooden box. He turns the handle on the side, and-

The whole room ‘awe’s as the little music box starts to play Fly Me to the Moon. Roman takes care to set the box down when it’s finished, and then he tackles Virgil to the floor in a hug, saying thank you over and over again.

“You two really are a matching set,” one of Roman’s cousins pipes up, and the boys look at each other, cheeks red and smiles wide.

“Yeah. We are,” they say together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> school and work are !!! killing me!!! but I'm trying really hard to keep up with this story and keep the content level just as good, and all ya'll's kind comments and kudos (even those of you who just scream in the comments) literally fuel me!! I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH AND YOU MAKE ME VERY HAPPY THANK YOU. anyway. 
> 
> as always please please please let me know if there are any errors!! I need the help!! 
> 
> find me on tumblr as hickory-dickory-doc-k or discord as dee-dee#4855 and scream about sanders sides or this fic or other people's fics or whatever basically. Pop over and request something you'd love to see written, give me a prompt, or just chat! I love friends!
> 
> join us next time for Christmas dinner, and some ... other stuff *suspense*


	8. The Prince and the Proper

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roman’s family treats him like he’s meant to be here, just another part of the family, like he’s one of the siblings or cousins, like he’s-
> 
> Like he’s Roman’s boyfriend.
> 
> Everything goes wrong after dinner.
> 
> *****
> 
> Christmas dinner is magical.
> 
> The hour after Christmas dinner is less magical.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG GUESS WHO HAS A BETA READER/EDITOR?
> 
> big big BIG shoutout to airiervessel on tumblr (seriously check her out she's awesome) for messaging me out of the blue and offering to be my beta! I was literally so shocked and flattered and grateful and I still am so like wowie big thanks to her. She has literally already improved my writing with tiny things that make a HUGE difference. also she came up with title for this chapter and I! Love! It!
> 
> anyway enjoy some angst!

The rest of the day whirls by without much happenstance. Roman and Virgil play games with Roman’s cousins (Virgil wins a lot, and Roman oscillates between pretending to be mad and being proud of him), they watch Christmas movies (“We are  _ not  _ watching Nightmare Before Christmas, that’s a Halloween movie!”), they snack in the kitchen and they take a nap.

It’s the most relaxing day Virgil thinks he’s ever had, and it helps that Roman barely lets him go five minutes without touching him in some way - hand holding, latched to his arm, cuddling on the couch.

Virgil’s dying inside, but if this is death, then she is a kind, kind mistress.

They nap on the couch in the living room, gathered together under a blanket, and are only woken up when the smell of dinner starts to waft from the kitchen.

“Ro,” Virgil whispers groggily, “Ro, wake up, I think we need to start getting ready.” 

“Five more minutes,” Roman grumbles as he pushes his face into Virgil’s shoulder. 

“Princey, c’mon,” Virgil tries again, this time running one hand up and down his friend’s arm. 

“Fine, fine, whatever. Pillows aren’t supposed to talk you know,” Roman mutters as he sits up and rubs at his eyes. Virgil chuckles and shakes his head.

“You said we have to get dressed up. Knowing you that means you’ll want time to do makeup and hair. I’m just looking out for you,  _ babe, _ ” Virgil snarks, and misses the way Roman swallows hard at the name. 

“Aw, thanks, you’re so sweet,  _ babe, _ ” he replies, hoping his voice is dripping with sarcasm, instead of the endearment he really feels.

Virgil’s heart leaps into his throat. 

True to his guess, though, Roman does spend thirty minutes on his hair and makeup, and then begs Virgil to let him do his. 

And, well, Virgil is finding it hard to think of a situation where he  _ would  _ say no to Roman. 

So they spend thirty  _ more  _ minutes in the bathroom, Roman flitting about as Virgil sits on the toilet seat, trying not to move too much. Roman actually  _ straddles him  _ when he blends his eyeshadow and brushes on mascara.

Virgil is breathless. 

After half an hour that feels way longer and also far too short, his hair is a little curlier, his bangs frame his face nicely, his eyelashes are longer and his lips are shiny. 

Virgil glances in the mirror and feels like he wants to hide under a blanket. But Roman is beaming, and Virgil can’t find it within himself to be self-conscious when Roman is looking at him like that. 

They slip into their suits, matching silver ties for the two of them. Virgil pretends he doesn’t know how to tie his, like always, and Roman goes along with it, like always, and then stands on a chair to tie it for him, like always. 

Virgil gulps when he’s eye to eye with Roman, like always. 

Standard stuff.

The family hoots and hollers when they come downstairs, Roman on his arm as they descend. Virgil blushes and Roman looks positively ecstatic. It’s a nice feeling, having someone so wonderful hanging onto him. It’s like a prom do-over. 

Virgil takes care to pull Roman’s chair out for him, earning him smiles from around the table. Dinner is delicious, with more dishes than Virgil has ever seen at one time (and almost rivaling the number of presents from this morning). Roman’s mother encourages him to take seconds and thirds, spouting something about him being a sack of skin and bones but “still so handsome dear, I just worry-“, and he feels warm all over. Roman’s family treats him like he’s meant to be here, just another part of the family, like he’s one of the siblings or cousins, like he’s-

Like he’s Roman’s boyfriend.

Everything goes wrong after dinner.

*****

The children have been put to bed, and now it’s just the adults sitting around the living room, quiet Christmas music drifting from the radio. The alcohol had been broken out soon after the young ones had been tucked in, and Virgil felt he was floating through a wonderful haze; barely tipsy and magically drifting.

So when Roman stands and offers his hand, Virgil accepts without a second thought.

They sway back and forth together, and Roman’s parents and siblings with their significant others follow suit. It’s a scene from a movie, a flash of perfect harmony.

It’s I’ll Be Home For Christmas sliding through the air in a low-lit room, snow falling softly outside, and it’s the best Christmas Virgil has ever had. 

There isn’t any mistletoe when they lock eyes this time.

But Virgil feels warm, and happy, and peaceful. And Roman’s brown eyes look dark as night, almost black in the whispered lamp-light, inviting and gentle and calling Virgil closer.

Virgil listens.

He kisses Roman. No excuses, no mistletoe, no family egging them on.

He kisses Roman, and for a few seconds, it’s beautiful. It’s the conductor holding out his hands after the final moment of a symphony, when the audience is still captivated and is forgetting to applaud, when the performers are holding their instruments still and their breath stiller. 

Then someone crashes symbols inside his head, because he pulls away and Roman is frozen, eyes wide and mouth hanging open. _Surprised,_ _disgusted, hates you, wishes he never even brought you here-_ Then Virgil is pulling away, shoving away as quietly as he can, racing through the house and out, out, out into the freezing cold, snatching his car keys off the hook- the Prince family hook by their front door, he doesn’t even have shoes but he has his phone, his car keys and his wallet and-

Roman is calling after him, Roman’s mother and father are calling, shouting his name as he slams his car door shut behind him.

Stupid, stupid, stupid for ever thinking he could be apart of this, ever thinking he could have the perfection that is Roman Prince, with his dark hair and dark eyes and beautiful lips-

He shoves his car into reverse, backing out of the driveway as fast as he can, snow be damned. Roman is trying to run towards him, but his car is faster, and away he runs, into the night.

Stupid for thinking that he deserved something so soft and so warm and so wonderful. 

Stupid to think that he could touch something without breaking it. 

Stupid to think he deserved a happy ending at all. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *leaves for two weeks to let y’all scream in the comments*
> 
> as always please catch me on tumblr (hickory-dickory-doc-k) or discord (dee-dee#4855) to chat or scream or request a writing prompt or anything!! 
> 
> School and work are still crazy, and I love and appreciate all of you and your wonderful, beautiful patients 
> 
> Each comment, even the ones where you just scream, are so so so dear to my heart and I love them. Seriously, ya'll are incredible. 
> 
> See ya next time!


	9. A Vanishing Act (Chase Me?)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virgil glances down at his clothes to confirm the thoughts he’s just had and- yep. He’s still in his suit and tie.
> 
> Which means he really did kiss Roman.
> 
> And then he really did sprint out of the house.
> 
> Another glance down.
> 
> Yes, really without shoes. 
> 
> Fuck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always a big big BIG shoutout to @airiervessel who is my beta reader, my editor, and literally co-wrote a section of this chapter because she was helping me plan where I wanted to go with it and we laid out some dialogue as an example and then i. i just used the exact dialogue for that section. word for word. she’s amazing go check her out!!!!

_Virgil learned a lot of useful life lessons when he was young. Too young. Too young for an_ _empty house and an empty pantry and an empty life._

*****

_ He can still remember the first time he got caught stealing.  _

_ Five years old, a convenience store worker catches him slipping a granola bar into his pocket and he bursts into tears. Blubbering that he’s sorry, he’ll put it back now, please don’t call the police, please- _

_ The worker crouches down and curls his little fingers around the crinkly packaging, cooing softly at him. There are questions - where are his parents, is he all alone, does she need to call someone for him? _

_ Virgil learned to lie at age three, so his tale about his home down the street is met with a gentle smile and a hair rustle, and telling him to just come back and ask next time he’s hungry.  _

_ Virgil does not return to that store. _

*****

_ Age six, a field trip to the science museum thirty minutes from his school. He gets off the school bus, slip in hand, gasping at the sight of his mom’s car in the driveway.  _

_ Virgil sprints to the door, unlocking it quickly and pushing inside. An empty hallway, empty kitchen, empty bathroom- _

_ He keeps searching. Her car is here, she would be here, right? Both her and dad take different cars when they leave town, they never go together. _

_ Apparently the routine had changed. The empty house is the same, but the car stays parked in the driveway. Probably to keep people from thinking he’s alone so much.  _

_ He signs the permission slip himself.  _

_ The museum isn’t worth it. _

*****

_ A talent show in the sixth grade wins him fifteen dollars. He spends it on a large pizza and eats for two weeks.  _

_ It feels hollow and heavy in his stomach, but the congratulations from his english teacher on his spoken word poetry brings a little color to his life.  _

*****

_ The one time his parents are home and they are fighting.  _

_ Even Virgil’s noise cancelling headphones can’t drown out the voices shouting about how they had never wanted a kid in the first place.  _

_ Sleep does not bless him that night. _

*****

_ An apartment complex pays him thirty bucks a floor to sweep out the hallways. A laundromat gives him ten for cleaning the dryer chutes. A paper route in early mornings earns him tips, and becoming the middleman distributor earns him even more and means he can sleep in on Saturday mornings.  _

_ His school doesn’t sell soda, so he buys twelve packs for four bucks and sells the cans a buck a piece. The money is easy and the other kids don’t know any better.  _

_ Coat hangers to the dry cleaning company for three and a half cents each. His neighbors buy the story he sells about needing metal coat hangers for a science project.  _

_ He’s tired all the time, but he’s not cute enough to beg anymore and he looks like a kid who would definitely steal, so he can’t ever get away with it. People watch him too closely.  _

_ This money feels cleaner anyway, and the food he buys with it sits a little more comfortably.  _

*****

_ When he’s thirteen the empty house becomes a little emptier.  _

_ Virgil doesn’t leave a note. _

_ He’s not sure they ever noticed anyway. _

*****

Virgil gasps as he pulls his head out of his hands, feeling as though he’s been doused in cold water. He’s driving, right?  _ Oh my god is he driving? _

No. No, the car is pulled over. He’s parked on the shoulder of the road, right. He had started freaking out, so he’d pulled over. 

The memories, the memories,  _ the memories of that stupid house. _

Virgil hates that house. 

He rolls down the window of the car, breathing deeply, needing the cold. It’s biting, but Virgil keeps the window down anyway. He slowly shuts off the engine, trying to recall why he’s out in the snow. The house was a long time ago, right? He doesn’t have to go back, he’ll never have to go back because Roman  _ promised- _

Roman. 

Shit.

Virgil glances down at his clothes to confirm the thoughts he’s just had and- yep. He’s still in his suit and tie.

Which means he really did kiss Roman.

And then he really did sprint out of the house.

Another glance down.

Yes, really without shoes. 

Fuck.

_ Okay, think Virgil. How do we handle this and- _

Panic, apparently panic is the answer and his breathing is speeding up again oh god  _ he does not want to think about that house again, anything but that hous- _

His phone rings in his pocket and he digs it out, taking heaving breaths as he looks at the caller I.D. 

_ Princey _

Even in his panic he knows he’s not supposed to talk to Roman, but he can’t really remember why and Roman calms him down, right? Roman calms him down, and Virgil feels both panicky and tipsy and he should  _ not  _ be driving. 

He clicks accept.

“Ro I think I’m too tipsy to drive holy fuck why I am out here, Princey I don’t even know how to drive in snow I’m from  _ Florida! _ ” He gasps into the phone. 

“Then you shouldn’t have run out on me, emo nightmare,” Roman’s voice hums through the phone. There’s the distant sound of a blinker transmitted through his microphone before Roman speaks over it. “Are you driving right now? Can you pull over and tell me where you are?” His voice is so calm, and Virgil sighs quietly. He doesn’t have to go back to that house, he can go back to Roman’s house instead where it’s warm and-

“Wait, no no no, I’m not supposed to see you, I ruined everything! I fucked it up and I’m not supposed to see you anymore I’m supposed to be leaving-” Virgil starts again, turning the keys in the ignition. He’s supposed to be heading back to campus to hide under his blankets forever, that’s what he’s supposed to be doing, packing his bags and leaving again, no note and no trail-

“Virgil,” comes the gentle reply. “You know that’s not true. And even if it is, even if you’re not supposed to see me, I want to see you. Virgil, please tell me where you are.” There’s a little panic in Roman’s voice now, and Virgil feels bad for causing it, but he can’t go back. Their friendship will never be the same. Everything is ruined.

“You didn’t even give me a chance to properly kiss you anyway.”

And, well. 

Virgil’s brain takes a surprisingly long time to process those words. Then-

“I’m on the shoulder of the road near that big oak tree. The one right before the park,” he whispers into his phone. Roman doesn’t let him hang up, walking him through his breathing exercises. Virgil stays hunched over in the driver's seat, the snow and the wind blowing through the open window.

Virgil doesn’t see the car approaching, but he hears the crunch of snow under tires and a door slamming open and closed. Then Roman is pulling his car door open and he’s tumbling out into his arms, dropping his phone and wrapping himself around the smaller boy, taking deep breaths. 

“In for four, hold for seven, out for eight. You got this Virgil, good job,” Roman is shushing him and he feels like a stupid kid but Roman is here. 

Roman came for him.

He lifts his head from Roman’s shoulder to meet his eyes.

“I’d like to kiss you properly now, if that’s alright with you,” comes the whispered question. Virgil can’t bring himself to speak, so nods instead.

It is just as magical as the first kiss.

It is more so, even, because Virgil knows now. 

Roman likes him back. Roman might even love him back. Whatever he returns, Roman is kissing him, running his hands through Virgil’s hair and it is warm and beautiful and slow and soft. Roman is smaller than him but right now Virgil feels tiny, protected in the way Roman’s arms move to rest on his shoulders, his hands splaying warmly against Virgil’s neck. 

Roman pulls back just slightly, his breath hot against Virgil’s face. 

“Don’t cry," he hums as he presses light kisses to the taller boy’s cheeks, clearing the tear tracks in the gentlest way. He connects their lips again and it is salty but it is still wonderful. 

Virgil is filled with fire, not raging, but burning softly in his chest like the glow of a hearth.

They are interrupted by the honk of a horn.

“My mom,” Roman huffs softly, their lips brushing again as he speaks. “She was worried I’d had too much to drink, wouldn’t let me drive.” Virgil is embarrassed knowing that Mrs. Prince had witnessed so much, but when Roman’s hand slips into his, he finds he doesn’t really care. 

“Boys! Virgil doesn’t even have shoes on, get in this car before you freeze to death!” 

“Coming mama!” Roman shouts back before lowering his voice again. “This is gonna be fun to explain.”

Virgil almost inquires about what he means, until he remembers.

Roman’s family thought they were dating. 

To them, Virgil kissed his boyfriend, then freaked out and ran away into the night.

Shit. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i finally had free time today, except I was feeling super unmotivated to write this chapter so ugh. but then I read a bunch of comments from last time, and rehks_the_mess left a super long and detailed comment like two days ago that just. it was really sweet and it gave me the energy and drive to actually write this chapter so thank you! 
> 
> I think (keyword being think) there will be one more chapter after this but we’ll see how it goes. I appreciate every single one of you who leaves kudos and comments saying nice stuff about this fic or my writing in general. seriously you all fuel me, and i can’t say that enough.
> 
> find me on tumblr (hickory-dickory-doc-k) or on discord (dee-dee#4855) to chat or give me a prompt you'd like to see written! love you all!!


	10. Tied With A Bow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> it's Britney bitch.

Virgil almost has another break down as they climb into the car, but Roman keeps his hand held tightly, and then tucks himself under Virgil’s arm once they’re settled in their seats. It’s grounding, and Virgil keeps his breathing steady as Mrs. Prince puts the car in drive and slowly starts back towards the Prince household.

It is silent.

Eerily silent.

Like Virgil is going to throw himself out of a moving vehicle if someone doesn’t speak soon silent. He’s opening his mouth to break the quiet when Roman beats him to it.

“There’s a totally reasonable explanation for this mama, really, Virgil is just shy and we haven’t-”

“Roman. Shush.” Her voice is firm, but Virgil doesn’t interpret it as cold or angry. He’s had a lot of experience with cold and angry voices, and Mrs. Prince doesn’t  _ sound _ upset. Roman snaps his mouth shut at the command, squeezing Virgil’s hand a little tighter. 

More silence. 

Virgil really should just jump out of the car, they’re not moving that fast because of the snow and he can tuck and roll pretty well-

“Roman, I’m not stupid,” Mrs. Prince starts with. 

“Mama, what are you talki-”

“I know Virgil isn’t really your boyfriend.” And that, well that is indeed the truth, isn’t it? Maybe things have changed, but Mrs. Prince knows that they were lying? Does she hate Virgil, does she think Roman shouldn’t hang around him anymore, does she-

“Mama, what are you talking about?” Roman tries to laugh it off. “Of course Virgil is my real boyfriend, we’ve been dating since-”

“Roman Thomas Prince.” Mrs. Prince puts the car in park right there in the middle of the empty street and turns around in her seat. She clicks the cabin light on so that she can stare the two boys. “Stop your lying young man.” Roman swallows audibly, but then nods.

“Yes ma’am.” Roman doesn’t say anything else, so Virgil takes it upon himself to try and resolve the situation, despite the way his heart is pounding.

“I’m really sorry, Mrs. Prince, honestly it’s all my fault, I-”

“Virgil darling, it is absolutely not your fault, you just relax sweetie,” Mrs. Prince offers him a sweet motherly smile, and he’s just so confused. “And Roman, honey, you too. I’m not mad,” she says as she turns the light off and begins driving once more. 

“...you’re not?” Roman ventures, and Virgil can feel him start to relax in his seat, leaning into Virgil’s shoulder a little more.

“Of course not honey. I’ve known Virgil wasn’t your boyfriend since you two walked through that door,” she huffs, shaking her head.

“How’d you know?” Virgil asks softly, and Roman glances up at him.

“Sweetheart,” Mrs. Prince starts, making eye contact with her son in the rearview mirror, “every boyfriend you’ve ever had you have been very physically affectionate with. And in comes Virgil who at first you’d barely hold hands with! Well, I could tell just by looking at you two that you hadn’t told each other how you felt yet.”

“Wait wait wait-” Roman stops her, “you knew how we felt about each other??”

“Honey, it was so obvious!” Mrs. Prince laughs, shaking her head. “Have you seen the way Virgil looks at you? Or the way you look at Virgil? No one can fake that sweetie.” Virgil feels his face go red, and he’s entirely embarrassed until he hazards a glance down at Roman and sees the other boy’s face is equally flushed. 

“So have you two worked it out yet?” She asks, and the boys look at her and back to each other, before answering at the same time.

“No.”

“Not yet.”

“Well, I suggest you get to it,” she hums as she parks the car in the driveway. “There aren’t a million chances for what you boys seem to have. I’ll stall the family, you two … talk,” and with a wink, she closes the car door. 

Silence. 

More silence. 

“So-” Virgil begins.

“So I like you. A lot. I might even be in love with you, and I would like to hold your hand and cuddle and kiss you under the mistletoe and- actually, scratch that, I would just like to kiss you a lot, with or without mistletoe, and if that’s too much then I’m sorry but it needed to be said-” Roman is rambling now, and Virgil can’t help it, he laughs.

“and- hey! Don’t laugh at me!” Roman whines, smacking Virgil’s shaking chest lightly. “I’m pouring my heart out to you! Laughing is against the rules!” 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Virgil chuckles, calming himself. “It’s just- this is so ridiculous. We’re really idiots, aren’t we? I mean, think about it, how long have we been dancing around each other and your mom guessed the first time she met me? I just-” saying the words out loud sends Virgil into another laughing fit, and this time Roman joins him. They laugh hysterically for a few minutes, finally sighing as they lean against the back of the seat together. 

Virgil takes a moment to really look at Roman, barely visible in the glow of a distant street lamp, cheeks red from laughing. His eyes are dark and his hair is darker and his smile is so vibrant that it makes Virgil’s chest ache. 

“Hey, Ro?” He whispers softly as they search each other’s faces.

“Yeah Virge?”

“That thing you said about loving me?” Roman stiffens a little, but nods.

“Yeah?”

“Me too.”

“Oh thank god,” Roman breathes a sigh of relief. 

“And that thing about kissing me, that too.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” Roman grins handsomely, and Virgil lets the cold night drift away in favor of Roman’s warmth.

_ One Year Later _

“Wake up wake up wake up!” 

Virgil groans and rolls over, pressing his face into Roman’s shoulder. 

“You have to answer,” Roman mumbles, cuddling closer.

“He’s your cousin.”

“Yeah but he likes you better.” 

“Five more minutes, Rem!” Virgil calls with another groan, thankful that they had remembered to lock the door last night.

“But Virgil! It’s Christmas!” The boy exclaims, complete with a cute little lisp thanks to the loss of his front teeth a couple of weeks ago.

“Merry Christmas,” Virgil murmurs to his boyfriend as Roman yawns, blinking his eyes open sleepily. “Happy anniversary.”

“Merry Christmas and happy anniversary, you emo nightmare,” Roman says, but he’s grinning, and Virgil can’t help but reciprocate. 

“We’ll be downstairs in five minutes Rem!” Virgil calls, and they hear the boy’s footsteps rapidly speeding down the hall.

“Maybe ten,” Roman hums as he presses a kiss to his boyfriend’s lips, the two of them curling into each other a little more as they rub the sleep from their eyes.

“You better have gotten me something good. It’s Christmas  _ and  _ our anniversary,” Roman laughs, running his hand through his hair as the two finally stand, handing each other combs and deodorant and toothpaste.

“You think I got you something? No way loser,” Virgil teases, his eyes sparkling almost as brightly as the ring he has hidden in a pocket of his suitcase. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> after fifteen million years and one two month sabatical, this story has come to a close. thank you all so much for joining for this journey, your words and appreciation mean the world to me, seriously. you are all so kind and beautiful and deserve the world. be sure to keep an eye out for my next projects, hop on over and visit me at tumblr (hickory-dickory-doc-k) or discord (dee-dee#4855), and feel free to leave suggestions about things you'd like to see me write! I'd love the input!


	11. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (Make the Yuletide Gay)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bet you bitches thought I was gone huh? S I K E   
Enough of ya’ll requested a proposal/wedding chapter and I’m a fucking sucker so Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays! Happy Wednesday if you celebrate nothing! H E R E Y A G O

“Pat, I’m … nervous,” Virgil swallows, feeling his tie pressing against his throat. 

“I was too, but don’t worry,” Patton offers him a gentle smile, brushing imaginary lint off his friend’s shoulders. “You and Roman are meant to be.”

“I know, I know, and I’m not nervous about being married to him, god, I’ve- I’ve wanted to be married to him for so long, but just- what if something goes wrong during the ceremony? What if he falls over, or I fall over, or we-”   
“Virgil,” Patton interrupts, snapping his fingers in front of his best friend’s face, “I think you need a distraction. Let’s think about something else, yeah?”

“Okay, okay, uhm,” Virgil wracks his brain before beginning to speak-

*****

_ “Wake up wake up wake up!”  _

_ Virgil groans and rolls over, pressing his face into Roman’s shoulder.  _

_ “You have to answer,” Roman mumbles, cuddling closer. _

_ “He’s your cousin.” _

_ “Yeah but he likes you better.”  _

_ “Five more minutes, Rem!” Virgil calls with another groan, thankful that they had remembered to lock the door last night. _

_ “But Virgil! It’s Christmas!” The boy exclaims, complete with a cute little lisp thanks to the loss of his front teeth a couple of weeks ago. _

_ “Merry Christmas,” Virgil murmurs to his boyfriend as Roman yawns, blinking his eyes open sleepily. “Happy anniversary.” _

_ “Merry Christmas and happy anniversary, you emo nightmare,” Roman says, but he’s grinning, and Virgil can’t help but reciprocate.  _

_ “We’ll be downstairs in five minutes Rem!” Virgil calls, and they hear the boy’s footsteps rapidly speeding down the hall. _

_ “Maybe ten,” Roman hums as he presses a kiss to his boyfriend’s lips, the two of them curling into each other a little more as they rub the sleep from their eyes. _

_ “You better have gotten me something good. It’s Christmas and our anniversary,” Roman laughs, running his hand through his hair as the two finally stand, handing each other combs and deodorant and toothpaste. _

_ “You think I got you something? No way loser,” Virgil teases, his eyes sparkling almost as brightly as the ring he has hidden in a pocket of his suitcase.  _

_ “Yeah yeah, whatever you say Rudolph the pierced-nose emo-” _

_ “Not your best, princey-” _

_ “Well I don’t see you coming up with any better, Frosty the No-man.” _

_ “... okay. That was pretty good,” Virgil concedes, winning a kiss from his boyfriend.  _

_ Once they’re dressed well enough to open presents (see: not shirtless where Roman’s mom could see some incriminating evidence of what they did in Roman’s bed last night), they head downstairs, much to Remy’s delight. _

_ “Virgil!” The young boy shouts as he barrels into the tall man, leaping at him. This interaction is common, though it stresses Virgil out to no end, as he’s always afraid he’ll drop him. _

_ “Remy!” Virgil shouts back anyway as he catches him, scooping him up and settling him on his hip.  _

_ “Present time! Present time!” Remy begins to chant, joined by Roman.  _

_ This year is slightly different, as Virgil has brought presents for the main Prince family (i.e., Roman’s siblings and parents). He had been worried about offending all the aunts and uncles and cousins, until Roman had reminded him that he’d be bankrupt before he got even halfway through getting gifts for them all.  _

_ Mrs. Prince was delighted by her silver bracelet, engraved on the inside with a set of words that she refused to show anyone else, though she did cast a raised eyebrow at Virgil about it, to which he only smiled. Mr. Prince received a nice watch on a leather strap (thank god for thrift stores), and the cousins received framed photos of themselves and their family from last Christmas, photos courtesy of Roman.  _

_ Virgil doesn’t tear up when he receives several wrapped packages this time, and the gifts are far more tailored to him than last year, thanks to having spent more time with the family. Virgil thanks them for the fidget items and the CD on meditation, knowing it will help with the upcoming semester. Roman shoves a gift into his hands, and this time he doesn’t argue as he slowly undoes the wrapping.  _

_ “Ugh! Just rip it open!” Roman begs, causing Virgil to smirk as he slows down even more.  _

_ “Sorry, what was that?” He teases when he finally gets the box open. His smile dies at the sight of what’s in it. _

_ “I know this is probably stressing you out in front of my family, but we’ve talked about it a lot and I just think it’s time, especially since the lease is up on your apartment this month-” _ _   
_ _ “Roman, it’s perfect,” Virgil says, slipping the necklace with the key on it over his head. “My gift isn’t near as good,”  _ ** _at least, not this one, _ ** _ Virgil thinks. _

_ Roman is confused by the CD with cover art of a dancing couple on the moon, until Virgil leans over to explain. _

_ “I uh. I went to a recording studio. Lo played the piano, and the person singing the cover is,” Virgil clears his throat, “is me.”  _

_ “Oh my god, really?” Roman whispers, holding the CD to his chest. “You- you hate people hearing you sing, but you-” _

_ “Recorded myself in a professional studio for you, yeah, I’m sappy and so are you let’s move on,” Virgil laughs as his eyes start to water, shaking his head. Mrs. Prince ushers the unwrapping onto the next person, letting the boys have their moment.  _

_ ***** _

_ The rest of the day passes much the same as the last Christmas, naps and getting ready together and dinner. Except this time, when Virgil feels like kissing Roman while they snuggle on the couch, he does. When he feels like pulling Roman close by his tie and kissing him til his lips are a little redder, he does. When he wants to hold Roman’s hand at dinner, he- well, you get the idea. _

_ Everything is perfect. Virgil has never felt so at peace, especially surrounded by so many people.  _

_ Swaying in the living room is perfect, though Virgil is working to control his heartbeat. Not because of the fact that Roman is so close - though sometimes that does get him heated - but because the box in his pocket is burning a hole there. And then, while Roman is resting his head against Virgil, eyes closed, Mrs. Prince makes eye contact with him and he nods. Thankfully, Roman had fallen asleep first during their nap, and Virgil had had time to talk with Mrs. Prince. To explain what the engraving on her bracelet meant, and how she could help him.  _

_ So, when Virgil nods, Mrs. Prince quickly and quietly alerts the other couples to clear the area.  _

_ And when the room is empty, the Christmas music is replaced with their song.  _

_ “Mmmm, this is perfect,” Roman lifts his head as the first notes start, turning slightly to glance around the room, only to look back at Virgil. “Hey, where did everyone-” _

_ “Roman,” Virgil blurts out, cutting his boyfriend off. “I uh, I’ve never been really good at speeches, but- but I-” Virgil stops, closes his eyes, and takes a deep breath. Okay. He can do this.  _

_ When Virgil opens his eyes, Roman looks worried. So he sets himself down on one knee, holding Roman’s left hand in his own. _

_ When his boyfriend’s eyes widen, he knows Roman understands. Still, he continues. _

_ “I’ve never been good at speeches. You are the writer in this relationship, and I know I can’t even begin to prepare prose better than what you could come up with. But you’ve never cared that I’m not articulate, or that I would rather hide away in my dark room than go hang out with our other friends. You are open and honest with me, and I- Roman I love you. So much. To the moon and back and forever onward,” he says, clearing his throat when he gets choked up. He digs his free hand into his pocket and flicks the box open.  _

_ “So - Roman Thomas Prince - will you marry me?”  _ _   
_ _ Roman pauses for half a second, tears in his eyes, and Virgil almost starts to backtrack. _

_ “Of course, of course, god of course Virgil yes,” Roman breathes, and Virgil laughs wetly, slipping the ring on his hand with shaky fingers before he stands, kissing his- his fiance. Holy fuck, Roman is his fiancee.  _

_ “You’re my fiance,” he whispers breathlessly when they break the kiss, and then incomes the Prince family, hooting and hollering and shouting like there’s no tomorrow. They break open bottles of champagne and pour flutes, toasting until early in the morning.  _

_ ***** _

“And then we fell asleep on the couch, and- god Patton, it was so perfect. It was the most magical day of my life,” he whispers, eyes watering.

“Sounds like it,” Patton hums, his own eyes wet. He just loves love, okay? “Now c’mon,” Patton clears his throat, wiping his face. “You’ve got an alter to stand at.”

And when Roman walks down the aisle, in a white suit, led by his mom, Virgil can’t help it - he tears up again. 

This is happiness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay THERE. THE END.
> 
> maybe. 
> 
> idk.
> 
> Anygay, thanks for joining me on this journey and yada yada yada (I super love ya'll, literally so amazing and I wrote this chapter just because of how nice and supportive and lovely ya'll all are)  
tumblr! discord! my other fics and aus! You know the drill by now i'm p sure  
love you!!


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